Commentary
Virginia Tech Recruits Psychologist to Target ‘Latinx’ Students
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Should universities target their mental health resources toward certain racial groups?
A resounding “no” might seem obvious, but not according to Virginia Tech. The university recently advertised an open position for “Staff Psychologist/Staff Counselor – Hispanic-Latinx Focus.” As the title suggests, the position specifically focuses on Hispanic students.
The job description has since been removed from Virginia Tech’s website, but a listing remains live on a third-party site.
On the one hand, there is nothing wrong with Virginia Tech’s aim to improve student access to mental health counselors. But specifically directing taxpayer resources toward supporting the mental health of a select ethnic group reeks of racial preferencing. Why not simply improve mental health capabilities for all? Why specifically target certain racial groups?
Well, a glance at the job description reveals that Virginia Tech views its mental health counselors as agents in its effort to improve access to “underserved” students and increase racial diversity among its counseling staff. There’s clearly a strong ideological motivation at work, as well as the belief that the “lived experiences” of Hispanic students requires special care.
“Part of this initiative will include recommendations and strategies to make Virginia Tech more affordable and accessible for underserved students, addressing financial feasibility and student success,” the job description reads.
Additionally, if that weren’t obvious enough one of the job’s preferred qualifications is “strong commitment to social justice and issues of diversity.”
The justification for the position echoes the notion that racial concordance, in which the patient and the healthcare professional are of the same race, produces better outcomes. The weight of evidence shows that this is simply not true.
“Cook Counseling Center supports the academic mission of the university and has focused upon growing the multicultural competence and ethnic and racial diversity of the counseling staff,” the description continues. “The goal for this position is to further our work with Hispanic-Latinx communities and marginalized students as we better understand the lived experiences of these students on this campus.”
Unsurprisingly, this job posting is not an isolated expression of Virginia Tech’s commitment to ideology, but rather reflective of the school’s broad engagement with DEI.
Job descriptions for positions at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine obtained by Do No Harm reveal the extent to which the school’s bureaucracy is saturated with DEI principles.
For instance, the medical school advertised for an “Admissions Specialist” whose duties included demonstrating a “commitment to advancing traditionally underrepresented groups in medicine.”
Similarly, the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs is expected to serve on DEI committees, while the Director of Admissions must have “significant progressive experience in educational training and in recruiting and relating to selecting a diverse body in lines with the goals of VT.”
One position, the “Inclusion Coordinator,” is entirely focused on “efforts to integrate inclusion, equity, diversity, and quality initiatives.” The position’s qualifications include a “demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusion,” while job duties include “URIM (underrepresented in medicine) recruitment, and implementation of DEI workshops/training sessions.”
In fact, Do No Harm identified over ten positions that explicitly required a commitment to diversity and related concepts as a qualification, or involved furthering DEI as a job duty.
What’s more, the medical school operates its MEDS-E, or Medical Exposure for Diverse Students Experience, program targeting students who are members of groups “underrepresented in medicine,” and providing them with educational opportunities.
It’s a worrying sign when medical institutions view their racial composition as an urgent priority with public health subordinate to an ideological agenda.
What really matters is quality healthcare delivered by qualified physicians, pure and simple. Virginia Tech would do well to remember that.